Friday, September 30, 2011

The HQ is well aware of the idea of inspiring the players that coaches have under their charge... especially after a loss...

But a trip to a cemetery... and telling your kids to lie down on the ground...???

That's a bit much... even for the HQ's tastes...

A JV coach outside of Syracuse, New York is suspended for half of the remaining schedule for having his kids do just that.
"The players were directed to lie down, looking toward the sky, in a grassy area between two rows of grave markers and headstones,” Craig Tice, Marcellus Superintendent said.

The coach said, in an apology, that he was trying to reference "Remember The Titans" with the action...

Here's the latest...

The coach's money that he would have gotten for those games is now being donated to the cemetery...

Elbows to the side of the head will do that for you...
((HT: NHL/CSNChicago))

Smith is suspended for the remainder of the preseason and, on top of that, the first five regular-season games for the hit on the side of Chicago Blackhawk Ben Smith's grill earlier this week.

Smith loses $23,648.65 in salary from the suspension.
"It's exactly the hit they are trying to get out of the game," Blackhawks head coach Joel Quenneville said when the hit initially went down. "It's the blow to the head where it's the first point of contact. It's unfortunate for us but hopefully at the same time the players will adjust."

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Greetings from the soon to be new hometown which is in a week going to be the same hometown we lived in until 2009. (We'll explain another day).

We head to week 3 of our little poll and week 4 of the already interesting college football season. Things are quickly sorting out, though we fully expect it to change several times before we're done. Change happens, every year.

This weeks clip asks a question, we often still ponder...where is Donald Duck?

No big "Holy Crap" games this week and Galactic Realignment has slowed--for now, so we expect most of the teams that should win to win. The highlight of the past week easily: The long-overdue firing of Mike Locksley. However, we don't wish the New Mexico rebuilding job on anyone, it will take years, possibly a decade to recover from that disaster.

Totals so far: Last Week: 11-4 Not great Overall: 23-6. Much greater. And no, we aren't smart enough to pick the spread, so we don't.

So, to quote our pal Kasey Kasem; "On with the countdown".

The Dirty Dozen:

1) LSU 4-0. Yes, they've earned this. Wins vs. Oregon and West Virginia will do that. And they are running the table with the backup QB. Can't wait to see these guys vs. Alabama. This Week: vs. Kentucky. Prediction: LSU 37, Kentucky 6

2) Oklahoma 3-0. Clearly, they will be in the chase all year. Win vs. FSU was huge. They struggled with Missouri however. Schedule sets up pretty well for them from here. This Week: vs. Ball St. Prediction: Oklahoma 41, Ball St. 17

3) Alabama 4-0. They haven't been pushed, yet. Typical Alabama team, not flashy and physical as all get out. Hearing there may be some trouble in their future off the field, but that is another story for another day. This Week: at Florida. Prediction: Florida 23, Alabama 21. UPSET!

4) Boise St. 3-0. Just laying in the weeds. Keep winning and let the rest sort itself out. No challenges left, though the defense has raised a couple of questions. This Week: vs. Nevada. Prediction: Boise St. 47, Nevada 23.

5. Stanford 3-0. Another team that just needs to take care of business. Only hurdle left is a date with Oregon in a few weeks. They should handle everyone else. This Week: vs. UCLA. Prediction: Stanford 34, UCLA 14

6) Oklahoma St. 4-0. Still don't know how they came back to win last week. They won't stay here. They are like every other Okie State team all flash and no "D" (sorry daffy). That will come back to haunt them. They may rack up 1500 yards this week against a team that gave up nearly 700 to Ga. Tech. This Week: vs. Kansas. Prediction: Oklahoma St. 112, Kansas 24

7) Nebraska 4-0. Well, someone in the Big 10 won't be undefeated after this week. If they survive this week, look for these guys to win their half of the 10. Yes, that's right. Their half. This Week: at Wisconsin. Prediction: Nebraska 23, Wisconsin 21

8) Wisconsin 4-0. Big week. And we'll stick with the belief they will fold under pressure. They always do. Good but not great, it's the Wisconsin way. This Week: See Above

9) Florida 4-0. Really. They've earned this. At least so far. They haven't been pushed. And this is their 1st of back-to-back big tests. They can win, but they are going to have to throw better because they aren't going to run against the good teams. This Week: vs. Alabama. Prediction: Nervously, see #3

10) Virginia Tech 4-0. We'll find out how good they are this week. They've beat the crap out of the crappy teams they've played. And that doesn't tell us a whole lot. This Week: vs. Clemson. Prediction: Va.Tech 31, Clemson 30 (Not confident of this pick)

11) South Carolina 4-0. Not sold here either. They stay in the dozen because Marcus Lattimore is a beast. If he goes down, they are screwed. This week: vs. Auburn. Prediction: S.Carolina 48, Auburn 47.

12) Baylor 3-0. Okay, yes, I know, they were whiny bitches for protesting the Texas A&M thing, but they've earned this. Why do I say this you ask? Because they have RG3, Robert Griffin the 3rd, who may be the best player/athlete in College Football. This Week: at Kansas St. Prediction: RG3 37, K-State 21

The Bottom of the Barrel:5)UAB 0-3. Well, every team in Alabama can't be good. And these guys aren't. They are 100th or worse in three of the 4 major statistical categories. Need any more proof? This Week: at Troy. Prediction: Troy 41, UAB 21

4) Indiana 1-3. Normally we wouldn't put a one-loss team here...but HOW DO YOU LOSE TO NORTH TEXAS? You must really suck if that happens. There is no excuse...but they play in the highly overrated Big 10, so that explains some of it. This Week: vs. Penn St. Predictions: Joe Pa's 33, Indiana 17

3) Memphis 1-3. Yes, they have a win too, but it will be their only one. This is one of the country's worst football programs. And yet they are in a good area for talent? Is it the coaching? Perhaps. This Week: vs. Middle Tennessee. Prediction: MTSU 28, Memphis 14

2) Florida Atlantic 0-3. Who came up with this schedule? Starting with Florida, Michigan St. and Auburn? Really? We know you need money to pay for your new stadium, but surely the Schnellenberger isn't that insane...is he? This Week: at La. Lafayette. Prediction: La.Laff 31, FAU 17

1) New Mexico 0-4. Well, they get credit for getting rid of Locksley. But they still lost before that to Sam Houston St. and no D1 school should be losing to them. This is still for going on the 3rd straight year, the worst team in the NCAA. That isn't changing soon. This Week: vs. New Mexico St. Prediction: N.Mexico St. 41, New Mexico 31

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

A judge in Atlanta has granted a $230,000 bond to Javaris Crittenton in his murder case.

Judge Karen Woodson rejected a request by Crittenton's attorney, Brian Steel, that all charges in the case be dismissed because, Steel maintains, police had no physical evidence.

Crittenton is charged with malice murder, aggravated assault and gun possession in the August 19th shooting death of Julian Jones. It is alleged that Crittenton shot Jones ((or had Jones shot)) accidentally as he meant to shoot a man in a group with her who he believed had stolen jewelry from him...

Police maintain that Crittenton was picked out of a photo line-up. As a result of being released on bond, he also has to wear an ankle monitor.

Monday, September 26, 2011

But not before his final pre-game salvo toward the White Sox front office...
((HT: CSNChicago))

After an afternoon meeting with members of the ChiSox front office, it was divulged that Ozzie was released from the rest of his contract...

And, now, depending on who you believe Guillen is allowed to proceed to the Marlins in exchange for a few minor leaguers. He should be perfect for the franchise and the fan base the team will try to attract with their new logo- very 80's logo...

It was a thirty-minute ((or so)) press conference that had a lot of whooping, hollering, and yelling. It almost reminded the HQ of one of these every time either the Texas A&M President or any subsequent presenter at the College Station, Texas lectern...
((HT: WWE/SpikeTV/youtube))

But, it is official... Texas A&M, Yell Leaders and all, are the third addition to the Southeastern Conference in the 78 year history of the Ess-E-Cee...

There was the perfunctory amount of pomp and circumstance...
And it was a Texas-sized party- complete with house band...
((HT: KBTX-TV))

In unrelated news, Baylor University is purchasing the property on the Hotel Waco site, fueling speculation that the school is closer to the idea of building their own on-campus barn for football and any other sport that they can fit in on the grounds...

Florida State University football player Greg Reid's attorney, Tim Jansen, says that Seminoles junior Greg Reid wasn't at the incident location and that Reid will be cleared from all charges and cleared with the school.

Reid is up on charges of resisting an officer without violence and perjury not in an official proceeding. The police report indicated Reid was trying to protect a friend from his hometown of Valdosta, who was being pursued for resisting arrest after being stopped earlier by police.

Okay, we all know that Toledo got massively screwed in their loss to Syracuse on Saturday... it should have been a 30-29 win for the visitors, but it was a video instant replay boof that took the win away from them...

As a result of the protest and the protestations...

BIG EAST Conference coordinator of football officiating Terry McAulay has issued the following statement...

"After studying the videos of the Syracuse extra point attempt at 2:07 of the fourth quarter, we have concluded that the ruling on the field that the kick passed between the uprights was incorrect, and that the replay official made an error in failing to reverse that ruling. In reviewing the video, we have determined that the angle from behind the kicking team shows conclusively that the ball passes outside the right upright.

Our review of the process determined that the replay official mistakenly focused his attention on the sideline angle, which proved to be distorted. We are confident that our officiating staff will learn from this situation in order to prevent a reoccurrence."

Here's the latest from the other U-T...

There's no way this gets overturned and we appreciate the Rockets bravado...

There were three other minors in the Locksley car when it was pulled over. One of the minors actually told the arresting officer that “I will use my father’s powers” to find out where the officers lived.

First and foremost, the HQ will keep head coach Jerry Kill in its collective thoughts as he re-admits himself to the Mayo Clinic to continually monitor his body after the latest round of seizures he had a few weeks ago.

He has had multiple episodes since...

"The seizures continue to be a concern for me and my family," Kill said in a released statement. "Rebecca and I have made the decision to do what it takes to find a solution. I hope to be back to work soon, but we believe that taking some time away to get a handle on this is the right thing to do."

According to Gopher football team physician Dr. Pat Smith, Kill suffered another seizure Sunday morning.

Smith said that Kill is in good condition and his vitals are good...

On the field, two defensive TD's by hometowner Marcus Williams led to a 37-24 win over the Gophers by North Dakota State. It's not the first time in recent memory that the home team lost to a Division I-AA FCS school...

But it still doesn't look good... and, apparently, close to 20,000 Bison fans made the trip... Dave Berggren tells the story...

Well, that is finally settled and we all can take a deep breath now. Not that it wasn't a foregone conclusion or anything.

Surprising very few, the SEC's invitation to Texas A&M became official and according to reports today, was accepted.

The offer had come a Sept. 7th (seems like months ago) but was contingent on no legal action being taken by anyone in the Big 12, the conference A&M was spurning.

Baylor, Iowa State and Kansas wouldn't agree and threatened to sue. Today they decided not to. Of course, as you know, that comes after it looks like the Big 12 will stay together since the Pac 12 has spurned Texas and Oklahoma.

Oft troubled and target of ours and so many others ridicule for his poor head coaching skills, University of New Mexico coach Mike Locksley again finds himself in some pretty hot water.

The reason: The Albaquerque Journal reports that 19-year-old Joshua Butts was pulled over and charged with Driving While Intoxicated near the university's football stadium. Butts is a former Illinois high school football star. He told police after his arrest that Mike Locksley gave him the car to use and he was in New Mexico to play football for him.

Further investigation showed the car was registered to Locksley and his wife. The University released a statement saying it was registered to Locksley's son.

Read the entire story from the ABQ Journal RIGHT HERE (hoops to jump through to read it)

The whole story is a bit confusing though there are apparently quite a few ties between Locksley, his family and Butts. The question is whether Butts was a legitimate recruit, an alleged player or just a friend hanging out.

Either way its not good. Locksley has been in and out of trouble for the past going on 3-years and has done nothing on the field other than render the Lobos program as the laughing stock of the NCAA. And yet he still is the head coach.

Despite the overhwhelming temptation to judge here, we won't. Read and judge for yourself. Look at his track record and the circumstancial evidence here. Any way you read it, it doesn't sound like it is going to end well.

Oh wait, it does get better. Apparently this comes on the heels of UNM's strength and conditioning coach Troy Hatton getting arrested for DWI or DUI on Thursday and being placed on administrative leave.

Awesome!

I don't know why, maybe it is just the UNM admisitrators who are living in a fantasy that Locksley is the best coach for them, but this is what I think of when I think of them:

Friday, September 23, 2011

It's another high school football weekend, which means there's another disagreement between opposing players- this time in the Houston area on television...

Houston-Lamar and Houston-Chavez were going at it. And in the second half, Chavez QB Demun Mercer ran out of bounds and was hit late by Lamar's Darin McNeil. Mercer ran after McNeil and the rest is below...

Not bad for a TV game, eh...???
No word form the Texas High School Athletic Association on punishments as of yet...

To say this was an "Unfortunate" incident would be completely underselling it. It most certainly is a sad statement about some hockey fans. Hockey is not a sport known for its diversity, though they've made strides over the past few years. The NHL itself tries very hard to be inclusive, hockey is just a tough sell to some demographics.

We'll steer clear of ranting on our thoughts about race and sports. If you know us, you know where we stand. We don't see color and never have. We see people. We certainly don't condone stuff like this and it saddens us as hockey fans to see it. We hope it was an isolated incident and eventually authorities will figure out who the moronic idiot who did it was.

That person should never be allowed the "Privilage" of attending a sports event ever again. And spare me the "As long as they have money" or "If you buy a ticket you can do what you want argument", that doesn't fly here.

File this under strange. According to reports, the man assumed to be Leo Nunez, closer for the Florida Marlins, has been suspended for the rest of the season and has left the country, returning home to the Dominican Republic.

And get this. Reports say Nunez, may not actually be Nunez. According to the Associated Press, his actual name: Juan Carlos Oviedo, one year older than the guy formerly known as Nunez was listed at in the team media guide.

Yes, he's now on the restricted list with Major League Baseball too. He apparently will remain ineligible until he clears up his paperwork issues.

Nunez has been pretty good this season, racking up 36 saves for a less-than-stellar Marlins team. He's third on their all-time list of saves and stands, according to the Miami Herald, to make $5.8 million next season.

Thursday, September 22, 2011

World Wrestling Entertainment has been long-known for product placement, and this Monday was no different...

Hugh Jackman was on "Monday Night Raw" cross-promoting his new "Real Steel" movie, which looks like it's heading straight to the bargain barn.

He was paired off in a continuing segment with Vickie Guerrero, Dolph Ziggler, and Zack Ryder. The first two maintaining that no wrestler in the back could beat the champ. It was Jackman's job to find an opponent, be there to help, and put him over.

((The HQ just used a lot of wrestling terminology. To translate- Jackman's role was to find an underdog that would beat Ziggler and embarass Guerrero on the show))

Not that the HQ is shocked at this development or anything, but John Kaites and Jerry Reinsdorf are at it again- trying to buy the Phoenix Coyotes for pennies on the dollar...

At least, that's what the HQ is surmising...

They may have to take a number since Greg Jamison's group is still talking to the City of Glendale and the NHL- and have been since last month.

The last time Kaites and Reinsdorf were interested, they wanted a "special funding district" at Westgate's City Center to help fund the purchase and cover operating losses. There was also an opt-out clause that would have allowed the Glendale Hockey LLC group to move the team if financial losses continued.

Kaites and Reinsdorf were still interested and even went through the bankruptcy phase created by then-owner Jerry Moyes, but chose not to bid at the bankruptcy hearing.

Then, through multiple attempts at owner, we're back to the beginning...

East Carolina has applied for membership in the Big East attempting to fill the gap left by either Syracuse or Pitt ((or some school that wants to leave that hasn't yet... Rutgers *cough* UConn *cough8))

Here is the statement released by East Carolina a few days ago on the topic...

The university leadership and the Pirate Nation have been steadfast and undaunted in preparing and positioning our athletics program to be a viable conference member that wins championships on and off the field and has the opportunity to participate in BCS bowls. The achievements include $92 million in facility improvements and additions, growing football attendance figures that produced an average of 49,665 fans per game in 2010 and record football season ticket sales reaching over 24,000 this fall.

In addition, statewide television viewership of ECU games equals the top five DMA areas in the nation for a football program that has won two of the last three Conference USA championships and earned five consecutive bowl appearances.

Recent announcements related to conference realignment have created an atmosphere of urgency and uncertainty across the nation for institutions, athletics departments and fan bases at those institutions. The leadership at East Carolina University is actively engaged in conference realignment discussions and remains aggressive in positioning the athletics program in an ever-changing conference landscape.

At this time, no one knows exactly how the future of the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) will look. While many of the developments are not in East Carolina’s control, we will continue to work diligently to influence any realignment possibilities as opportunities present themselves. There will be intense competition for any available automatic-qualifying BCS slots, which could include anything from a realigned C-USA to any number of other conference configurations.

In these uncertain times, we must remain focused and determined on what we can control and what has brought success to our program thus far. For our coaches and student-athletes, that assignment is to prepare, compete and win in the classroom and on the field, and for our loyal Pirate fans, it is imperative that we continue to fill our stadiums and arenas in Purple and Gold.

Steve Ballard
Chancellor, East Carolina University

Terry Holland
Athletics Director, East Carolina University

Here's coverage from WNCT-TV about some kinds of mergers and acquisitions...

Currently, the Big East is looking at ECU, UCF, and the service academies to fill slots in an attempt to remain relevant...

Now, today, Holland and Ballard released this:
"While we have formalized our interest in Big East Conference membership as a viable option, ECU will remain focused on competing at the highest level through the efforts of Conference USA."

Whether or not, ECU will fly may not be the question... the larger question will come from expanding a viewer footprint... the ECU spin is in paragraph two of the bolded statement...

Of course the question here is whether this will be enough to make everyone happy. It won't. But it is a start.

The Big 12 is supposed to meet today and discuss extending some invitations for some other schools to join them. Specifically, they are targeting Brigham Young. BYU would replace Texas A&M.

However the conference still has the specter of Missouri flirting with the SEC. And despite reports to the contrary, that is not a done deal right now.

If the conference can somehow convince Texas to share revenue equally and water down the Longhorn Network, then they will survive. As the saying goes "Rumors of there demise, may have been greatly exaggerated".

Wednesday, September 21, 2011

It seems, recently, that Federal agents have been trying to ramp up their prosecution, tracking, and distribution of marijuana- especially as it has been leaving a section of Northern California called "The Emerald Triangle."

One such shipment that was being tracked ended up, allegedly, at the home of Cincinnati Bengals' wideout Jerome Simpson and lineman Anthony Collins...

A "controlled delivery" was made to the home in northern Kentucky, and when inside, police apparently found another six pounds of marijuana.

Why does this make sense that the Bengals would be involved in all of this...???

2) Boise St. 2-0. Yes, they are better than most of the SEC. And they aren't going to lose again. Deal with it. Alabama and LSU are the only SEC teams that could beat them. This Week: vs. Tulsa. Prediction: Boise St. 47, Tulsa 28

3)Alabama 3-0. They've been solid since deciding on a QB. The Penn St. win isn't as big as most think and they really haven't played anyone yet. Now they do. This Week: vs. Arkansas. Prediction: Alabama 23, Arkansas 21.

4)LSU 3-0. This may be one of the Mad Hatters best coaching jobs. They are really good, but won't win a title with Jarrett Lee at QB. Tougher tests are ahead. This Week: at West Virginia. Prediction: LSU 24, W.Va. 17

5) Stanford 3-0. You aren't going to beat a good team with a great QB in College Football. As long as Andrew Luck is upright, they win. This Week: Bye

6) Oklahoma St. 3-0. They aren't this good. But we'll put them here for continuity sake. The "D" is always the problem with the Fighting Gundy's and that hasn't changed. This Week: at Texas A&M. Prediction: Texas A&M 41, Okie St. 37--UPSET

7) Texas A&M 2-0. They will eventually get their freedom and head to the SEC. But that hasn't happened yet. The Big 12 should be happy they want to go, they are pretty darn good. This Week: vs. Okie State (See Above)

8) Wisconsin 3-0. Relax peeps. They won't be here at the end, they never are. But right now all the pollsters love them for beating up on "Little Sisters of the Poor". It's what they do in the Big 10. This Week: vs. South Dakota (really?). Prediction: Wisconsin 110, S.Dakota 12

9) Va. Tech 3-0. Are they ever not in this poll? They got off to a much better start, but really, they haven't played anyone other than E.Carolina either. This Week: at Marshall. Prediction: Va. Tech 35, Marshall 13

10) Nebraska 3-0. Still think this is your Big 10 champ, though they've struggled on defense a bit. They still have another week before getting serious. This Week: at Wyoming. Prediction: Nebraska 40, Wyoming 17

11) South Carolina 3-0. Begrudgingly. They may be the most successful bad defensive team in College Football. They get this because they have Marcus Lattimore, who is easily the best RB in College Football. This Week: vs. Vanderbilt. Prediction: SC 31, Vandy 28.

12) Florida 3-0. Because no 1 loss team should be here yet. And they've been pretty good. Charlie the Hut has been a godsend to the offense. This Week: at Kentucky. Prediction: UF 37, UK 17

THE BOTTOM OF THE BARREL:

5) North Texas 0-3. Another tough year to be Mean or Green. When you are near the bottom in every statistical category, this is where you end up. This Week: vs. Indiana. Prediction: Indiana 31, N.Texas 13.

4) Kent St. 0-3. You, you're not good. You are embarrassing people with the name Kent. Another team near the bottom in all categories. You've played 3 games, you should be able to do better. This Week: vs. S.Alabama. Prediction: S.Alabama 21, Kent St. 20

3) Akron 0-3. Well, they're not called the "Zips" for nothing. Lucky for them they are playing a 1-AA or whatever they call them team this week. It may not matter. This Week: vs. VMI. Prediction: VMI 3, Akron 2.

2) New Mexico 0-3. Mike Locksley= Worst coach ever. And yet he still is employed. We've run out of jokes since they've been here for the past 2-years. That won't change. This Week: vs. Sam Houston St. Prediction. Sam Houston St. 2, New Mexico 0

Well, so much for our "Galactic Realignment" theory. Though we did say Tuesday we weren't so sure the Pac 12 would follow through on expansion.

They didn't.

To the mild dismay of the University of Oklahoma, the Pac 12 Presidents and Chancellors have decided they are happy where they are. They don't want to expand. At least not in the near future.

Their statement (from commish Larry Scott):

"After a careful review, we have determined that it is in the best interests of our member institutions, student-athletes and fans to remain a 12-team conference. While we have great respect for all of the institutions that have contacted us, and certain expansion proposals were financially attractive, we have a strong conference structure and culture of equality that we are committed to preserve. With new landmark TV agreements and plans to launch our innovative television networks, we are going to focus solely on these great assets, our strong heritage and the bright future in front of us."

Let's read between the lines, shall we...

What Scott is essentially saying is, they were interested but they weren't taking Texas as long as the Longhorn Network exists in its current form. According to multiple reports, Texas wasn't willing to make concessions there. So that means nobody comes.

Oklahoma, well, they sort of get screwed. They lose whatever negotiating room they had. We reported yesterday on Chancellor David Boren's list of demands form them to stay in the Big 12. Well, now they are staying. And the Big 12 doesn't need to do anything because Oklahoma now has nowhere to go.

We can't wait to hear the next conversation between Boren and commissioner Dan Beebe.

Texas gets to keep their beloved Longhorn Network and will be hated on every level by just about everyone in college football. The Longhorn Network has been the impetus for almost all the proposed changes and UT comes across like the evil heel here in all scenarios.

The SEC is kind of hosed. They'll get Texas A&M, but that may be it. Their options are now limited. Unless they can convince somebody to bail on the ACC, they'll be stuck at 13 teams for a bit.

Yes, we know they "Offered" Missouri. That won't happen now we believe. Missouri will stay where they are.

The Big East is still on the fence. They've been injured by the ACC, and if Rutgers and UConn go, they are done and their members will have to find somewhere to call home. We don't think that will happen now either.

So there you have it. The Pac 12 and Texas have pretty much killed the rest of this story. And we for one, are damn happy about that. No, it doesn't mean that change won't happen in the future, it just means it isn't going to happen right now. (Though we could be wrong)

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

There seems to be a tentative offer to Missouri to be added to the Ess-E-Cee and, maybe in the process, move Auburn to the Ess-E-Cee East...

And all that is contingent on Texas A&M being allowed to join- exhibiting patience while waiting out the larger players in the Big 12/10 to make up their own minds...

The only hook in all of this is Missouri Chancellor Brady Deaton is the chairman of the Big 12/10 Board of Directors and has said he is working to keep the Big 12/10 together. He told The St. Louis Post-Dispatch last week that he can serve as chair and work in Missouri's best interests.

My, my, my...we've got schools making demands, boosters making claims and one conference not so sure they want to go to oblivion.

We'll start in Oklahoma, where the highly connected Berry Trammel of NewsOK.com reports that Oklahoma has let the Big 12 know what it will take to keep them around. And yes, you could consider it a form of ransom.

Among their requirements to stay: Big 12 Commissioner Dan Beebe must go. The other, The Longhorn Network must be watered down.

While not saying they'll stay with these moves, the implication is, they would. The biggest hangup in all of this is that they perceive Beebe is in Texas's hip pocket.

Interesting stuff.

In other "Galactic Realignment" news, Mike DeArmond of the Kansas City Star reports that he's been told by a close associate of a prominent Missouri booster that they have an offer to join from the SEC. But, much like the Texas A&M invitation, it's conditional.

Charles Bloom, the communications director for the SEC denied that report to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. And an Associate Athletic Director from the school denied it too.

While we don't know what has or hasn't been offered here, this report does not come as a shocker. There has been no secret of the mutual interest between the two parties here. However, given the current climate, we are not surprised that nobody is willing to give it any credence.

There are also multiple reports tonight saying the Pac 12 isn't so sure they want to expand. In order for the league to extend an offer to anyone, they need at least 9 out of the 12 school presidents to agree. And according to those reports, they don't necessarily have it.

What does this all mean: Nothing. As we've said repeatedly, Galactic Realignment is coming, we just don't know the form it will take. Nobody really does. The Pitt and Syracuse move to the ACC, if nothing changes, that won't happen for 2-years.

Yeah, 2-years. An eternity the way things are currently moving.

The biggest thing that we are seeing here and these reports back it up is, everyone is trying to cover their ass. They want options in hand so if (A) happens, they can move one way, if (B) happens they can move another. The possibility of this being a whole lot of nothing exists too, but we think with the money involved, that isn't likely.

The elephant in the room here seems to be Texas. They seem to have pissed off everyone in their conference and are the primary reason so many of them want to leave. We get that. That's why everyone is trying to protect their own interests. If Texas gives in to Oklahoma's demands, don't be surprised if the Big 12, by and large stays intact. Texas A&M is gone either way. If they are the only loss, the conference will survive. And be just fine.

Need another example of how bizarre conference realignment has gotten? The remaining football playing members of the Big East Conference have scheduled a "secret" meeting Tuesday night to see who wants in and who wants to get out.

Since Syracuse and Pittsburgh pursued the accepted invitations from the ACC last weekend, Big East commissioner John Marinatto wants answers from the gang of six.

Connecticut has been openly lobbying to become the 15th member of the ACC. UConn president Susan Herbst has been very public about that. Though president Herbst said UConn has not applied for ACC membership yet she acknowledged to ctpost.com that she grew up on ACC basketball from attending Duke University as an undergrad.

Notre Dame wants to keep its football independence however doesn't want to see the Big East go down in flames since it's a member of the conference in other sports.

Is Villanova eyeing a move to the ACC? One problem, the Wildcats football program is an FCS member.

Rutgers? They appear to look mighty attractive to the ACC. There have been rumors that Rutgers, along with Connecticut, were the next to bolt for the ACC.

Since the ACC and SEC appear not to want West Virginia will they now beg and plead their Big East colleagues to stay in the union?

Maybe the first order of business is the thank Texas A&M for accelerating what appears to be the demise of the Big East conference.

Today's 1st update in the Galactic Realignment of College Sports: According to a report by CBSSports.com reporter Brett McMurphy (same guy who broke the Pitt and Syracuse to ACC story), West Virginia isn't going anywhere fast.

Said McMurphy in a tweet this morning "Multiple Big East Sources said they have been told by WVU officials that WVU rejected by ACC and SEC."

This is not a surprise (at least to us). West Virginia to the SEC made little sense. Yes, it was pushed by several writers, but we never thought it was a good fit. They don't have the infrastructure or the population base for the SEC in particular.

As for the ACC, we suspect they have better options too. There is now some rumbling that they may end up with some combination of Notre Dame, Rutgers and/or UConn. While all may not be as competitive as the Mountaineers in football, they all are in much, much larger TV markets and sadly, this is what the whole "Galactic Realignment" is all about.

Stay tuned to OSG Sports for more updates, because this...by no means is the last you'll hear on this subject.

Well, there goes Mike Slive's dream of having all his schools out of trouble with the NCAA. The latest addition to the list of school's with NCAA issues is South Carolina.

Monday evening, the school was served. With a "Notice of Allegations" by the NCAA that is.

They allege that multiple football and two women's track athlete's got rooms at highly reduced rates at the Whitney Hotel from May of 2009 through October of last year.

We reported on this story back in September of 2010, read that story RIGHT HERE

That was the primary violation according to investigators.

The other, involved a group called the Student-Athlete Mentoring Foundation. Investigators say the president and treasurer of the group provided recruiting inducements and other benefits to football players, a basketball player and members of the track and field team.

Tied in with this. The suspension of wide receiver Damiere Byrd. Byrd, who's father is the VP of the foundation, had 4 visits funded by the group and a variety of other illegal gifts. Byrd must repay $2,700 back to the foundation.

It sounds an awful lot like South Carolina has some problems. While the SAM Foundation issue is minor and somewhat nit-picky, the issue with the Whitney Hotel is a bit more problematic. Though yes, we know the NCAA considers them both potential major violations.

The bigger issue is that SC qualifies as a "Repeat Offender" because violations they were proven guilty of in 2005, are not 5-years removed from this current issue.

The school will be stating their case in front of the "Committee on Infractions" this coming February. Yes, they have the chance to impose some of their own sanctions beforehand and we are betting they will. They've already disassociated themselves (at least publicly) from the hotel and the SAM Foundation. To their credit, they've already gone on record saying they take the problems seriously and will work with the NCAA to resolve any issues. And that also is a good thing.

As always, there will be some repercussions from this, and it will affect current players, not those who committed most of the violations. There won't be much done to the coaches or administrators, there never are.

South Carolina will survive this, our guess is they lose some scholarships and are put on double-secret probation for awhile. That is pretty typical of an NCAA penalty for something like this.

We all know football players, particularly those on defense, get excited when they score a touchdown. Often they will spike the ball or throw it off the back wall or do some sort of bizarre touchdown dance that they perceive as being cool.

Well, not last night. New York Giants linebacker Michael Boley gets the opportunity of the game, he recovers a fumble Monday night against the Rams, scoops it up and returns it for a touchdown.

And then he goes to celebrate. We think he was trying to throw it off the wall. Or at least we hope so. He missed and drills the guy standing next to a photographer shooting video. (It bounces of the photogs face).

Monday, September 19, 2011

The Board of Regents inside the Republic of Texas has given University of Texas-Austin President Bill Powers, pretty much, carte blanche ((that's a blank check, kids...)) to negotiate in the best interest of the school...

Here's Powers not taking any questions, but making sure that everyone knows the Longhorns position...
((HT: KXAN-TV Austin))

At the same time, the University of Oklahoma Board of Regents met in Tulsa to give the same powers to President David Boren. Conventional Wisdom has always been that these two would go, in concert, with Texas Tech and Oklahoma State to form an even-larger Pacific Conference.

Although, according to OSG sources, there has been ((and still is)) back chatter that Commissioner John Swofford and the ACC are still swinging at the chance to add Texas as the 15th of 16 teams. Swofford will go no higher than 16 teams in any expansion.

9 of the current Pac-12/10 presidents would have to ratify any additions- even if Texas goes east instead of west. And the chances of Oklahoma and Oklahoma State being added without Texas may go in question... and OSU regents will meet Wednesday...

So, then if the Big Four leave the Big 12/10, and the Big East continues to dissolve, there is an idea floating out there that it could be the Big East 12/10 ((or the Really Big East))...

In play would be Rutgers and UConn ((who could or would expand the Ess-E-Cee footprint)), Cincy, Louisville, West Virginia, and South Florida along with the soon-to-be TCU. The 12/10 would have Iowa, Kansas, K-State, Baylor, and Mizzou in play for a total of 12- for a new Big 12/10/12.

ESPN's Bob Ley caught up with one of the forefathers of the Bee-Cee-Ess, former Big East Commish Mike Tranghese, who isn't all that keen on conference armageddon...
((HT: ESPN))

The Mountain West and Conference USA folks are also tossing about the merger idea in a football-only universe.

It appears that Sunday night's Atlanta Falcons win over the Philadelphia Eagles has cost someone some money.

Midway through the game, Robinson was penalized for lowering his head and hitting the head and neck area of Eagles receiver Jeremy Maclin. It cost the Falcons and Robinson a 15-yard penalty during the game.

It cost Robinson $40,000 afterwards.

The NFL announced Monday afternoon that Robinson would be fined for the hit. And it isn't the first time he's been fined. He was fined $25,000 for a similar type of hit against the Eagles and wide receiver DeSean Jackson in 2010.

Robinson was told by the league essentially, you do this again, you may be suspended.

Well, the next dominos to fall in the "Galactic Realignment" of College Football should fall if not today (Monday), then sometime in the next couple of days.

We, along with the rest of the universe, reported both Texas and Oklahoma regents would be meeting today to discuss their options. Those options, at least from their perspective got a bit clearer this weekend when Pitt and Syracuse committed to the ACC.

According to the Austin American-Statesman, substantive talks between Texas and others with the Pac-12 occurred this weekend. Made more convenient due to Texas playing UCLA in Los Angeles. This despite Pac-12 commish Larry Scott saying just last week, "We're happy where we are". And we will say, these schools are coming to the Pac-12, not the other way around.

Statesman reporter Kirk Bohls reports Texas would prefer to stay in the Big 12, but that may not be possible.

What it appears will happen is this: Oklahoma, Oklahoma St., Texas Tech and Texas appear all but certain to head to the Pac-12. Scott is doing his best to try and accommodate/fold in, the Longhorn Network. We are reasonably certain, that will work out.
The only question really is when?

In light of this weekends moves, we expect this all to go down this week. There has been speculation that the Big 12 will try and absorb some schools from another conference. (The Big East football schools?).

Initially, we thought it would be the Big East and ACC who would have to combine to make their own super-conference, we don't think that now. It will end up being the remnants of the Big 12 combined with the Big East. It has to be. There's no other choice for any of the remaining schools to survive in the new landscape.

There are still questions out there. There is no guarantee Missouri or Kansas will sit for a combined conference. Though they certainly could and be just fine.

The other wild card is West Virginia. There's been a lot of speculation they want in the SEC. In a bad way. They question is: "Does the SEC want them?". And really, nobody knows the answer to that.

A Sports-Talk radio host in Pittsburgh tweeted Sunday that the Mountaineers have already sent their paperwork to the SEC. And the interest is mutual.

We could go on forever discussing the repercussions of all this. There are a lot of teams and a lot of people who are anxiously awaiting the fallout. The seismic shift is coming and while Saturday's announcement was big and in some ways, very surprising, it won't be the biggest. That friends, is a rose that has yet to be delivered.

We don't watch this show, though the Lovely Bride does, and don't totally understand this, but it is the best analogy would could think of visually to go along with this story, because these schools and conferences are essentially doing the same thing.

After a three-hour weather delay, Oklahoma State beat Tulsa 59-33, but that's not the kicker in all of this...

The game was scheduled to start shortly after 9PM, but didn't kick off until 12:17AM central time ((1:17 Eastern time)) because of three hours' worth of lightning and strong storms.

The NCAA requires a 30-minute cushion to let lightning clear the area before starting the game, and the teams were almost ready to stop the game period, but went ahead and started and finished in front of a few thousand die-hards...

Which does raise the question about: When is too late actually too late...??? And when do you cancel for the sake of cancelling...???

We've seen the MLB folks know when to put in curfews, but should the NCAA put this stuff in play as well...???

The ACC has accepted applications from the University of Pittsburgh and Syracuse, sending the Big East Conference into panic mode - trying to replace two of their cornerstone members.

Richard Broadhead, Duke president and also the head of the ACC Council, said, "Both schools are committed to competing at the highest level of
academics and athletics. We welcome them as full partners in the ACC."

Pittsburgh Chancellor Mark Nordenberg said that school officials "could not envision a better conference home for Pitt."

Syracuse chancellor Nancy Cantor - no relation to OSG Brother Phil - was quoted as saying, "'Cuse is looking forward to bringing ACC games to the Big Apple." The Orange was a founding member of the Big East, and had been a part of the conference since 1982.

“This
is a very significant day for all of our student-athletes, coaches and
staff at the University of Pittsburgh,” said Steve Pederson, University
of Pittsburgh Director of Athletics. “The strength and quality of the
ACC is highly regarded by everyone at Pitt. When we set high
expectations for our student-athletes in their academic, athletic and
personal goals, it is important to provide every opportunity and
resource to enable that success. Joining the ACC and the outstanding
institutions in this conference will give every Pitt student-athlete the
chance to achieve their highest aspirations.”

The ACC scheduled a 9:30 a.m. ET teleconference with the media to
announce the additions. It is not clear which division each of the new
schools will join.

The additions of Pitt and Syracuse make sense, in geographic terms, for the ACC. The name Atlantic Coast Conference now means a lot more, because there are teams in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and New York - the majority of the Atlantic seaboard.